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Jeanne Bamforth


Guest Old Canny Street Kid

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

JEAN BAMFORTH & THE BENTLEY SISTERS DANCE TRIO

I wonder if anyone knows anything about a Sheffield-born dancer called Jean Bamforth? She was born in Chapeltown in the September quarter of 1925, her parents being George and Elizabeth (nee Crookes) Bamforth, who lived in the High Green area for some years before moving to London. The reason Jean's parents moved to London (in the late 1930s) was, I am told, in order to further their daughter's career, for even as a young girl Jeanne showed outstanding talent as a dancer. She took to the professional stage, and I have been told that at one time she was part of a dance trio known as the Bentley sisters.

It has been suggested that the Bentley sisters were often on the same bill as Morecombe and Wise in the comedy pair's early days, and Jean was a good friend of M&W. Indeed, Jean was the Bamforth in "Morecamble, Bentley and Wise" --and act in the early 1940s.

Jean married Colin J. Beaton at Westminster in the September quarter of 1949, and they had two sons Timothy (b 1955) and Simon (b 1959) in the Hammersmith area.

Jean may have been connected with a dancing school in Ashford, Middlesex, known as the Jean Bamforth School of Dancing.

If anyone has any info about Jean or her family, or, indeed, about the dancing Bentley Sisters act, I would be very interested in hearing from them. Jean was one of my mother's cousins.

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

JEAN BAMFORTH & THE BENTLEY SISTERS DANCE DUO

I wonder if anyone knows anything about a Sheffield-born dancer called Jean Bamforth? She was born in Chapeltown in the September quarter of 1925, her parents being George and Elizabeth (nee Crookes) Bamforth, who lived in the High Green area for some years before moving to London. The reason Jean's parents moved to London (in the late 1930s) was, I am told, in order to further their daughter's career, for even as a young girl Jean showed outstanding talent as a dancer. She took to the professional stage, and I have been told that at one time she was part of a dance duo known as the Bentley sisters.

It has been suggested that the Bentley sisters were often on the same bill as Morecombe and Wise in the comedy pair's early days, and Jean was a good friend of M&W.

Jean married Colin J. Beaton at Westminster in the September quarter of 1949, and they had two sons Timothy (b 1955) and Simon (b 1959) in the Hammersmith area.

Jean may have been connected with a dancing school in Ashford, Middlesex, known as the Jean Bamforth School of Dancing.

If anyone has any info about Jean or her family, or, indeed, about the dancing Bentley Sisters act, I would be very interested in hearing from them. Jean was one of my mother's cousins.

I have now investigated the Christian name of Jean Bamforth, and it does seem that she actually used the simpler spelling. So JEAN it is. I have now obtained a couple of pictures that may help in my search. One is of Jean when she was very young, the other is a portrait taken in 1941.

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

I have now investigated the Christian name of Jean Bamforth, and it does seem that she actually used the simpler spelling. So JEAN it is. I have now obtained a couple of pictures that may help in my search. One is of Jean when she was very young, the other is a portrait taken in 1941.

Are there any theatre buffs, or theatre historians, out there? I hae just learned that Jean Bamforth appeared at the Palladium, London, in July 1939, on the same bill as Arthur Askey, Tommy Trinder, Toy & Wing, Doris Knight and Ernie Wise. An official programme for the show was recently sold on E-Bay. So it seems possible that she appeared with some of these top stars at venues such as the Empire and Lyceum in Sheffield. Jack Hylton was involved in some way inopportunity knocking for Jean when she was a girl, and this Palladium appearance was a turning point in her career.

Does anyone know of any theatre/show-biz history sites where they might list pre-war dancing/acrobatic and other acts?

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

Are there any theatre buffs, or theatre historians, out there? I hae just learned that Jean Bamforth appeared at the Palladium, London, in July 1939, on the same bill as Arthur Askey, Tommy Trinder, Toy & Wing, Doris Knight and Ernie Wise. An official programme for the show was recently sold on E-Bay. So it seems possible that she appeared with some of these top stars at venues such as the Empire and Lyceum in Sheffield.

Does anyone know of any theatre/show-biz history sites where they might list pre-war dancing/acrobatic and other acts?

Latest info on Jean is that she was last heard of in Norwich. Apparently for 20 years or so until the mid-1980s she worked in the BBC Wardrobe department.

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Latest info on Jean is that she was last heard of in Norwich. Apparently for 20 years or so until the mid-1980s she worked in the BBC Wardrobe department.

I have located Jean and, at the age of 83, she is now living in Norwich. She had a very interesting career as a dancer, and later she worked in the BBC costume department. She was born in High Green, and the family lived at 48 South Road, High Green, for a number of years pre-war. They then moved to Firshill House, and later lived in Abbeyfield Road (at Holtwood House). Her "discovery" by Jack Hylton seems to stem from one of those lucky strokes of fortune in that Hylton was appearing at the Empire, and one rainy afternoon when the weather prevented a trip into the countryside, he decided to look in on a matinee of a children's show at the Lyceum. He spotted Jean, contacted her parents, and the next thing was she was on the stage of the Palladium in a special "one-off" Bandbox show. Her career as a dancer/acrobat took off from there.

Speaking to Jean, she admits that she has lost touch with relatives in the Sheffield area, and has had no links with any of the descendents of her Bamforth aunts and uncles for many years until I made contact. She now knows a lot more about the Bamforth family history than she did!

She did mention a family by the name of DURANT whom she remembers from High Green in the 1930s --Fanny, Minnie and Bob Durant. She thinks they were related to her father, but it may be that they were related to her mother (Elizabeth Crookes). Does the name Durant in connection with High Green ring a bell with anyone?

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I have located Jean and, at the age of 83, she is now living in Norwich. She had a very interesting career as a dancer, and later she worked in the BBC costume department. She was born in High Green, and the family lived at 48 South Road, High Green, for a number of years pre-war. They then moved to Firshill House, and later lived in Abbeyfield Road (at Holtwood House). Her "discovery" by Jack Hylton seems to stem from one of those lucky strokes of fortune in that Hylton was appearing at the Empire, and one rainy afternoon when the weather prevented a trip into the countryside, he decided to look in on a matinee of a children's show at the Lyceum. He spotted Jean, contacted her parents, and the next thing was she was on the stage of the Palladium in a special "one-off" Bandbox show. Her career as a dancer/acrobat took off from there.

Speaking to Jean, she admits that she has lost touch with relatives in the Sheffield area, and has had no links with any of the descendents of her Bamforth aunts and uncles for many years until I made contact. She now knows a lot more about the Bamforth family history than she did!

She did mention a family by the name of DURANT whom she remembers from High Green in the 1930s --Fanny, Minnie and Bob Durant. She thinks they were related to her father, but it may be that they were related to her mother (Elizabeth Crookes). Does the name Durant in connection with High Green ring a bell with anyone?

OKSL it would be good to get a photo of Holtwood House - I snapped the old Lodge a while ago!

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OKSL it would be good to get a photo of Holtwood House - I snapped the old Lodge a while ago!

I agree it would be good to see a picture of Holtwood House.

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I agree it would be good to see a picture of Holtwood House.

Anybody know anything about the history of Holtwood House? I think Jean Bamforth's mother was the housekeeper there just before the second World War, but I wonder what was the name of the family who owned it?

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

I have located Jean and, at the age of 83, she is now living in Norwich. She had a very interesting career as a dancer, and later she worked in the BBC costume department. She was born in High Green, and the family lived at 48 South Road, High Green, for a number of years pre-war. They then moved to Firshill House, and later lived in Abbeyfield Road (at Holtwood House). Her "discovery" by Jack Hylton seems to stem from one of those lucky strokes of fortune in that Hylton was appearing at the Empire, and one rainy afternoon when the weather prevented a trip into the countryside, he decided to look in on a matinee of a children's show at the Lyceum. He spotted Jean, contacted her parents, and the next thing was she was on the stage of the Palladium in a special "one-off" Bandbox show. Her career as a dancer/acrobat took off from there.

Speaking to Jean, she admits that she has lost touch with relatives in the Sheffield area, and has had no links with any of the descendents of her Bamforth aunts and uncles for many years until I made contact. She now knows a lot more about the Bamforth family history than she did!

She did mention a family by the name of DURANT whom she remembers from High Green in the 1930s --Fanny, Minnie and Bob Durant. She thinks they were related to her father, but it may be that they were related to her mother (Elizabeth Crookes). Does the name Durant in connection with High Green ring a bell with anyone?

Just a footnote to say that Jean Bamforth's link to Morecambe & Wise is confirmed in Morecamble & Wise Untold by William Cook.

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Did you get any further with the DURANT family?

I found this birth:

GRO Births DEC 1917

DURANT Fanny W (mmn: Bamforth)

Wortley 9c 548

with this possible marriage for the parents:

GRO Marriages SEP Qtr 1902

BAMFORTH Edith Hannah Sheffield 9c 938

DURANT Thomas William B Sheffield 9c 938

Hugh

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

Did you get any further with the DURANT family?

I found this birth:

GRO Births DEC 1917

DURANT Fanny W (mmn: Bamforth)

Wortley 9c 548

with this possible marriage for the parents:

GRO Marriages SEP Qtr 1902

BAMFORTH Edith Hannah Sheffield 9c 938

DURANT Thomas William B Sheffield 9c 938

Hugh

Thanks, Hugh. Sorry for the delay. I have only just spotted your message. I am afraid that I didn't get any further with my inquiries, and I had just about given up.

Re Jean Bamforth, I now have reason to believe that one of Jean's sons was in the film musical, Oliver.

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Guest Old Canny Street Kid

I can now confirm that Jean Bamforth died aged 87 on Feb 3 2013 in Norwich, with her ambition to travel north for one last time to re-visit her High Green, Chapeltown and Sheffield roots sadly unfulfilled. See The Star, Feb 7th for more info.

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